Mining News

The hazardous mining by-product raises two questions – who’s to blame and who should pay.

The acid mine drainage crisis is going to cost someone a lot of money, but probably not the people who caused it. The “polluter pays” principle was next to impossible to apply to the acid mine drainage problem in a retrospective way, said Marius Keet, chief director for mine water management at the department of water and sanitation.

SABC's Fokus of 23 July 2017 addresses the planned Palmietkuilen coal mine east of Springs.

A new mining rush is under way in Springs, where companies are eager to get to the coal. In one of the latest bids, Pandospan, a subsidiary of Canyon Coal, on behalf of Anglo Operations, is hoping to get the green light for its proposed open-cast mine, Palmietkuilen.

In arguing against Atha-Africa and its BEE partner being given a mining right in a formally protected area, a civil society coalition said the proposed 15-year coal mine would cause “unacceptable pollution and degradation of the environment”. But their main point to the court was that a “poor decision-making process” had led to the granting of the right.

The mining industry accounts for about 20% of all investment in South Africa and generates R 441 billion in expenditure annually, of which R 407 billion is spent locally.Despite its importance, the mining industry is facing severe pressure on various fronts, including costs, environmental liability, and the lack of a cohesive strategy in terms of minerals demanded by the future green economy.

WITH hands covered with liver spots, Stan Madden points outthe expanse of Aston Lakeglimmering in the distance Fields of near-ripened meal­ies and clusters of soya beansstretch across this fertile, wet­land-sodden landscape on theoutskirts of Springs

Never-before-seen data shows a fortune has been set aside for mine rehabilitation in South Africa. But large mines are not being properly closed, and the money cannot be touched. Mark Olalde investigates

South African mining veteran Peter Skeat is pressing ahead with plans to squeeze more gold out of an 80-year-old ransacked gold mine west of Johannesburg after settling a dispute with three former partners.

The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) has been accused of “authorising pollution”, after its water quality tests for its acid mine drainage (AMD) plants in the Witwatersrand surpassed the government’s own water resource quality objectives.

More Mining News

The hazardous mining by-product raises two questions – who’s to blame and who should pay.
The acid mine drainage crisis is going to cost someone a lot of money, but probably not the people who caused it. The “polluter pays” principle was next to impossible to apply to the acid mine drainage problem in a retrospective way, said Marius Keet, chief director for mine water management at the department of water and sanitation.

SABC's Fokus of 23 July 2017 addresses the planned Palmietkuilen coal mine east of Springs.
A new mining rush is under way in Springs, where companies are eager to get to the coal. In one of the latest bids, Pandospan, a subsidiary of Canyon Coal, on behalf of Anglo Operations, is hoping to get the green light for its proposed open-cast mine, Palmietkuilen.
View the episode here.

In arguing against Atha-Africa and its BEE partner being given a mining right in a formally protected area, a civil society coalition said the proposed 15-year coal mine would cause “unacceptable pollution and degradation of the environment”. But their main point to the court was that a “poor decision-making process” had led to the granting of the right.

WITH hands covered with liver spots, Stan Madden points out the expanse of Aston Lake glimmering in the distance Fields of near-ripened meal­ies and clusters of soya beans stretch across this fertile, wet­land-sodden landscape on the outskirts of Springs

Eighty-two shafts without warning signs. Twenty-two open shafts. Three waterlogged holings. And of the reported closed mine shafts, 64 had collapsed or needed refilling.
These are among the main findings of a Department of Mineral Resources’ “Risk Area Status” report spanning the Witwatersrand’s mining belt from November 2011.

The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) has been accused of “authorising pollution”, after its water quality tests for its acid mine drainage (AMD) plants in the Witwatersrand surpassed the government’s own water resource quality objectives.

Johannesburg - Three former directors of Blyvoor Gold who were meant to revive the troubled Blyvoor gold mine have been described as the alleged “masterminds” behind the staggering R10 million theft of valuable mining equipment.

"Various organisations have done critical work on understanding the impacts on mining in 2016. The Centre for Environmental Rights has exposed the brutal reality of poor governance and its entrenched nature. The Centre for Applied Legal Studies has clearly shown that the Social Labour Plans, promising a new life for those whose lands are destroyed, has failed to deliver. The writing is on the wall. Mining does not work for people."
Download the full report:www.groundwork.org.za

The 'West and Central Rand' have historically contained some the biggest gold deposits on Earth. But extracting this resource has left a dangerous environmental legacy, says the Harvard Law School in a new and alarming report. Sheree Bega examines some of its findings
An eerie silence hangs over the dead waters of Robinson Lake and the crumbling ruins of the abandoned buildings that encircle the wasteland.

A new hard-hitting report from Harvard Law School details how South Africa has failed to meet its human rights obligations concerning gold mining in and around Joburg. Bonnie Docherty, who led the research, spoke to Sheree Bega
Johannesburg - Great riches and high risks. That’s the story of gold mining on the Witwatersrand, where the sparkle of the gold rush led to a boom that would give rise to Joburg, turning it into one of the most powerful cities on the continent. But the hunt for gold would also irrevocably alter our socio-political and natural landscape.

The signs of trouble started soon after Luciano Williams was born. When he was only one month old, he suddenly stopped breathing. It’s a moment his frightened grandmother, Ann, won’t ever forget. Little Luciano was lying in her arms: “I saw his eyes turning in his head. He couldn’t breathe. I was so scared. I asked his uncle to run to get a mirror to hold it in front of his mouth. But there was nothing coming out,” remembers the 60-year-old.

In 2010, workers at DRDGold’s Blyvooruitzicht gold mine near Carletonville toyi-toyi -ed to protest against a bid for the distressed mine by Aurora Empowerment Systems, whose reputation was already marred by events at Grootvlei and Orkney. Blyvoor traded itself out of its difficulties then, but only three years later, Village Main Reef, which was managing the mine pending the completion of a deal to buy it from DRDGold, put the mine into provisional liquidation.

JOHANNESBURG (miningweekly.com) – Government’s acknowledgment of the severity of acid mine drainage (AMD) in the Witwatersrand, Gauteng, and the subsequent priority given to taking steps to alleviate the problem are of “significant importance”, states Federation for a Sustainable Environment (FSE) CEO Mariette Liefferink.

South African minister of water and sanitation announced earlier in the month that her department was ready to implement a long term strategy to deal with acid mine drainage. The acid has been a source of pollution known to gold miners and activists for over 100 years. Angelo Coppola of CCTV has more.
View here: www.youtube.com

At Blyvooruitzicht, a 77-year-old gold mine southwest of Johannesburg, almost everything had been stolen except gold-bearing ore in the looting after the operation was closed in 2013.
Now, New York University graduates Bastiat Viljoen, 31, and his brother Dane, who was an intern at Goldman Sachs Group Inc., want to revive the ailing mine, which they say may contain 9 million ounces of gold, worth almost $11 billion at current prices. They are partly financed by South African mining entrepreneur Peter Skeat.

The World Health Organization is collecting hair samples west of Johannesburg to see if residents are suffering from excessive uranium pollution due to ore dumps from 130 years of gold mining.
The Geneva-based United Nations unit will analyze hair samples from about 1,600 people living in neighborhoods near mine-waste dumps, mainly west of Johannesburg, it said in an e-mailed response to questions. Uranium, which can cause cancer, can be ingested through drinking contaminated water or inhaling dust.

Residents of Blyvoor were this week still not sure what their future would bring.
According to Blyvoor's provisional liquidator, Mr Leigh Roering, the mine's liquidation is set to be finalised towards the end of May, despite the fact that some administration would still have to be done after this time. At this stage only the mine's No. 5 rock stock pile and the assets of Shaft no. 2 still need to be sold.

The case of the inactive Blyvooruitzicht (Blyvoor) gold mine, in Gauteng, highlights the need for clarity on the situation where mines are not ownerless or abandoned, but are nonetheless not operational, states the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC). SAHRC research associate Angela Kariuki says that, in situations such as at Blyvoor, there is no access control, the mine is not being monitored, nor is it being effectively managed. Article based on presentations delivered at the Nuclearisation of Africa Symposium.

Over a million Gauteng residents are exposed daily to high levels of uranium with some areas in the West Rand exceeding that of disaster zones from Chernobyl, site of the 1986 Ukrainian nuclear disaster.

The hazardous mining by-product raises two questions – who’s to blame and who should pay.
The acid mine drainage crisis is going to cost someone a lot of money, but probably not the people who caused it. The “polluter pays” principle was next to impossible to apply to the acid mine drainage problem in a retrospective way, said Marius Keet, chief director for mine water management at the department of water and sanitation.

The Federation for a Sustainable Environment is proud to announce the launch of the booklet titled “Rehabilitation of Mine Contaminated Eco-Systems. A Contribution to a Just Transition to a Low Carbon Economy to Combat Unemployment and Climate Change” by Mariette Liefferink of the Federation for a Sustainable Environment (FSE). The booklet was commissioned by the Alternative Information and Development Centre (AIDC) in collaboration with the Friedrick Ebert Stiftung.

Last week, the coalition of eight civil society and community organisations that has been resisting the proposed coal mine inside a protected area and strategic water source area in Mpumalanga launched further proceedings in the Pretoria High Court.

Disclaimer: This site features articles written by journalists who have contacted the FSE for information and input. The FSE is not responsible for the content of the final published article, or the accuracy of the information contained. The articles remain the copyright of the original authors and/or publishers. If you reproduce the article you must have the permission of the original author/publisher. All images and logos are copyrighted to their respective owners.